Shotton Comrades Interview
Details Interviewee '- Kevin '''Lee Coxon '(Shotton Comrades) 'Interviewer '- Johan Frank (IFK Norrköping) '''Forum Post Date - 4th December 2009 Original Thread '- Click here '''Divison At Time Of Interview '- England, 3.6 Interview 'Next up is my co-worker in this topic Shotton Comrades. Better post it before he lose his Div.3 status in a few days :) ' '1. Who’s Kevin Lee Coxon? ' Where do I start... ok here goes... Kevin Lee Coxon is a 24 year old unemployed bum at the moment ha-ha When I had a job I was a Quality Controller for a masonry firm, these days I'm a TM addict instead, they pay me £30 a week to sit on TM its not a bad life :P In all seriousness though I'm married to a beautiful girl Katie, and have a wicked 4 year old son who is recently obsessed with his hair, little poser! He's my inspiration really though, keeps me going everyday. In my spare time I'm often caught playing guitar and singing on YouTube (both very badly) I know some of you have often confirmed this :D Thanks lads! '2. When you started out in TM did you have any early plans and did they go like you wanted or have they changes since the start? ' To be honest when I first started I felt a little lost and didn’t spend too much time on here as I was busy with my job and studies (diploma in quality) but I soon got addicted, it was everything I wanted after playing Ultimate Soccer Manager years ago, When I started coming on more often I decided the first thing I wanted to do was sell my better players and then that would enable me to bring in cheaper younger options, It's only this season I’ve become truly happy with the average age; yes theirs better squads out their but I like what I've done, the main thing is I'm enjoying the game and the banter that goes with it! '3. Any advice for a new manager starting the game today? ' I have a friend who is just starting the game and the first thing I said was "you need to be patient in this game mind" lol I would try not to be put off by the lack of banter/press announcements in the earlier divisions, its not long before your promoted to more active leagues. Just try to enjoy the game, don't take it serious as some of us are often found doing and you will have a cracking gaming experience that’s different to FM & CM. '4. How much time do you spend on TM every day/week? ' Oh dear! It would be embarrassing if someone could tell me that, I have it on from the second I get out of bed till the last thing at night... If my computer is on it’s always on in the background. I always find some new players to look at or just daft conversations to jump into every now and again.... I should really get a job soon! '5. If you could hack Thomas account for a day and change TM at your will what would you change and what things would you implement? ' I have a B team like many of you but I agree with the argument of them being put in a league of their own, I'll not go into detail because you all know the reasons why and I wouldn’t want to bore you with it all again :) Other than that I don't think their are major changes needed, only that I think we should change the MOTD, after a discussion with others I believe we should have 3 games: Top Game: 900k Middle Game: 600k Relegation Games: 300k ...though I am realistic to realise it may be hard to implement. '6. TM is a great game, what do you like most about it? ' It's hard to pin-point just 1 thing! As I said earlier this game is the closest thing to USM from the 90's, the most appealing thing for me is pitting wits against "real" managers, the fact you can't just choose to start as Man City or Chelsea and have a cash-cow to fast-track your way to victory. For me this game makes it feel like you actually own your own team! '7. What do you least like with it? ' I'm sure most of you know I'm not a fan of the communication between MT's but I am most likely being unfair, we should really realise when the ME is in place the majority of the workload will most likely have decreased dramatically and they might communicate more. I have been impressed with the recent announcements, even if we don’t all agree with them at least they are starting to communicate again. As a QC I realise you can't please them all but you can always try! '8. Do you think you have your facilities at an affordable level and do you make a profit before a game is played? ' It's hard to complain because theirs always someone worse than you lol, I lost about 5/6m a week and expect to lose more next season when the players wages go up again (the problem with a younger squad) I think I could risk moving my facilities up to get greater players through training etc. but the reason I created a young squad was to avoid taking unnecessary risks. My plan is to keep this squad together for sometime then I may have made more money in the future and can then afford to upgrade without crippling the club.... *fingers crossed* at the end of the day its all if's and buts I suppose! lol '9. Thinking of upgrading facilities or is it economy safety first and building up second priority? ' Pretty much the same as above, I feel I have a squad I can keep together for some time without taking those risks, but you never know how fast things can change! Theirs some lower teams now with mentors who are adapting to the game quicker than I did and they have learned fast and are "day trading" younger players fast with huge profits... good on them too! But my personal opinion is I'd rather play the game without help, although I have asked pool a lot of questions about the financial aspects in the past. '10. 5 foreigners rule, good or bad? ' I really like this question for the simple reason of, if you asked me in my first 2 seasons I would have said what a stupid rule, but now my answer is, it’s a great rule! Yes its hard to find English players at a lower price but I've come to realise that this it gives you more competition and it's a great feeling when you find a bargain and believe me, their is always one out their! '11. Your first season in division 3 ended up with relegation, was it a too big step to take and too early? ' The first press announcement I made in this league was to tell fellow teams that I was the "Whipping Boys" of the division. But they were all supportive of me which was great! The support I've had all season if phenomenal, not just from teams in my group either! The big shock was getting the team up to 4th after 11 games, I was just starting to think "wow we might be safe" but then we turned into Phil Orange and Hull! I always set myself a target for a new season and I set it at 42pts to finish 12th, I never expected to stay in the division when I moved up but what would be the point in settling for relegation? You've got to try haven't you! I'm not very good at a lot of things but I'm always competitive, my view is to just enjoy any experience. So the answer is yes, but it was expected ;) '12. Aiming for a quick comeback? ' Not really, you never know how other teams are going to strengthen during close-season, and then also we got to take into account the new ME, we can't guarantee it will give us all 5-0 wins every game... unfortunately lol. I've set myself a target of 54pts which I believe could have me finishing around 5th place. If I can do that and get promoted the season after I believe I could have a team which is more capable of fighting in division 3. Just like Newcastle United I believe you sometimes need to take a step-back to make 2 steps forward. '13. Any up and coming youths we should be aware of for the future? ' Homer English! If my scouts are right he is a 20* who may have very good professionalism and good leadership, which would be fantastic. I'm just a little worried that I cannot afford to keep him, especially when his wages go up! On top of him we have A.Cider, D.Fickentscher & B.Martin who are all scouted as 17* and I have about another 7, 15*'s. Exciting times for me if the develop well, this is the reason I would like to stay in division 4 for another season, get these players some games and a season of developing. '14. Are there any of your rivals that you feel that extra "derby" feeling for when you see them show up in the fixture list? ' Their was 2 teams this season I was really excited to see! First against Nike Celtic, I love the craic Nike has and we quickly became friendly rival’s lol and he will hate me pointing this out but I took 4 vital points off him this season, sorry bud! The next game was against Init in the cup, we only started talking this season and all of a sudden we were drawn against each other in the cup, but I'm sure init realises the cup game was never important anyway ha-ha... only joking, I was gutted! But at least we injured each others players in the process, a proper rival game in my eyes! '15. If you could chose one team to beat 8-0 who would it be and why? ' Nike! lol sorry bud! Actually no, this will be a bit controversial but I'd like to beat Pure Youth with just my youths out, for the message he sent me a long time ago slating my youths lol Sorry Pure Youth its nothing personal... honestly :) It’s only a game :P (god some people will hunt me down for that remark! It is a game though :P) '16. What’s your best moment in TM so far? Was it a special game, season or a certain youth pull? ' Hmm... Tough question! Getting promoted was obviously a massive achievement and I remember Cudworth sending me a PM congratulating me after the last game because I changed my tactics and formation in the last game which totally countered the opponent. But I think my best moment was being nominated for TM Personality of the year, I won't have won but I never expected 1 vote, I think I’ve got about 5! As someone who got relegated it was phenomenal to see those votes, but more importantly the reasons behind them, being a top bloke apparently.... I swear they have mistaken me! '17. Where do we find Shotton in 5 season’s time? ' I'd love to see myself about 4th in division 3, pushing for those top spots season after season, and also having a decent amount of cash behind me, not masses but enough to keep the club stable. People might think I'm not being ambitious enough to get to the top 2 divisions but to be honest division 3 and 4 are harder than you realise, and my honest opinion is that once your in the top 2 divisions it becomes more of a business management game than a football management game, and I'm not great with maths and I failed miserably in business studies at school! Ha-ha '18. When will you win your first trophy? Its Trophy manager after all ;) ' I nearly swore then! I'll change it to god knows ;) I keep getting promoted through in actives or by being 2nd, I'd love to finish top one day but to be honest I'm happy as long as we are promoted I don’t care how we get it. Maybe I’ll get the division 4 title in season 19... Here’s hoping. '''19. I personally have a laugh with a few people in PM’s and I enjoy having a good bit of banter with others, have u made any new friendships on TM and if so who with? Yes quite a few, and it’s great. I feel as though I get on with just about anyone. I always try to take my time to PM teams who I haven't contacted before. I think Fine City & Burkinshaw Boys are probably 2 good examples; I just messaged them before games to wish them luck etc. But the people I love having banter with the most are Nike Celtic, Init & Borussia... the usual culprits I suppose lol but is says alot for them that so many people regard them as friends on here. I just like to have a laugh and I can always rely on those 3. 20. Looking forward to the new ME? ''' Can’t wait Johan! I am aware that it may not be the world changing progression that we all hope it is, but if the test engine was anything to go by, I'll be a happy man, I can live with randomness because that’s football but it looks like it's going to cut down on it. Also the look of the Line-Up looks great, and it’s nice to see the position filters could be back! Great for newbie’s too! '''21. Anything else you want to add before we say goodbye? Yes... WAKE UP! lol I hope I haven't put too many of you to sleep :P No seriously thanks Johan, it takes more work than people realise but I thoroughly enjoyed it. And thanks to all TM users, even you Pure Youth! Without all of us having a laugh this game would have been dead and buried but we all keep enjoying and long may it continue. Good luck to everyone next season, and please all enjoy the Xmas period and have a nice family xmas dinner will you! Cheers for answering and the help with this topic :)